Life On The Up

During my time living in Shanghai, I directed Life on the Up, a short film about Cheng Jian Wen, a window washer working 474 metres above the city on the Shanghai World Financial Center. Like millions of migrant workers drawn to Shanghai’s promise of prosperity, Cheng balanced life on the edge of China’s capitalist monument with dreams of something far more grounded: returning home to open a small business. Since filming in 2012, Cheng has left his post in the sky and returned to pursue that dream.